Perks, privileges of law officers: Senate body proposes amendments to remove disparities

ISLAMABAD: The Senate Standing Committee on Law and Justice has proposed amendments in the rules and regulations to address disparities in the salaries, allowances, and benefits currently available to law officers working at the federal and provincial levels.

The panel, which met here on Thursday with Senator Farooq H. Naek in the chair, was informed by the Secretary, Ministry of Law and Justice, that there is a clear disparity between the salaries and benefits available to federal and provincial law officers. He stated that provincial law officers receive a non-practicing allowance, while federal law officers are not entitled to the same facility.

Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro questioned how law officers could engage in private legal practice while holding official positions. He further observed that under the law, the Attorney General cannot engage in private practice and questioned how the Attorney General’s office could do so.

The chairman of the Senate body clarified that the Attorney General was allowed to do legal practice in the past, but that this was no longer the case. He stated that if federal law officers are to remain barred from private legal practice, their salaries, benefits, and service facilities should also be enhanced accordingly.

Farooq H Naek directed the Ministry of Law and Justice to prepare comprehensive rules on the matter and present them before the committee at its next meeting. He further stated that the ministry would undertake the necessary work to enhance the perks and privileges of law officers at the federal and provincial levels and submit its proposal to the committee in the next meeting.

The chairman of the committee informed members that a letter had been received from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) regarding the NAB chairman’s absence. NAB Deputy Chairman Sohail Nasir attended the meeting and requested that the briefing be postponed, stating that NAB intended to provide a comprehensive presentation and therefore sought additional time. He also apologised to the committee, explaining that amendments had been made to the agenda and the bureau required more time to prepare.

The committee took up the Juvenile Justice System (Amendment) Bill presented by Senator Sarmad Ali.

Senator Sarmad Ali, who participated in the meeting virtually, informed the committee that under the proposed amendments, no person below the age of 18 years would be awarded the death penalty. He further stated that the bill also provides for specialised training of judges dealing with juvenile justice laws. He clarified that the proposed legislation currently applies only to Islamabad and that similar legislation would later be introduced in the provinces.

The Secretary, Ministry of Law and Justice, informed the committee that similar amendments already exist under Islamabad’s juvenile justice law. He added that following the enactment of the 2018 federal law, the provinces had also implemented the legislation with suitable amendments.

Senator Farooq H Naek observed that the Criminal Procedure Code does not itself prescribe punishment, as punishment is always awarded under substantive criminal law. He further explained that juvenile justice legislation is a combination of criminal procedure and substantive criminal law.

Senator Zamir Hussain Ghumro stated that while the federation can amend federal laws, legislative authority over separate provincial subjects rests with the provinces.

The Minister of State for Law and Justice, Barrister Aqeel Malik, informed the committee that he chairs the Coordination Committee, emphasising uniformity of law, and that the remaining provinces were also working to implement the Juvenile Justice Act.

The committee decided to defer further discussion of the Juvenile Justice System (Amendment) Bill with the direction that the Secretary, Law, may brief the committee in its meeting as to whether the bill falls under the definition of criminal law or not, and a comparative analysis of juvenile justice laws of provinces may also be provided in the next meeting.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2026